After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 4

I'm JR of the JR Sport Reef Show on CBS Sports Radio. I'm also the host of the new podcast, Agents of Inclusion. We talk to a different Special Olympics athlete every week to learn how sports can bring us together. We're bringing both the disability and non-disability community to one community.

All one people, one family. It took me a little while, but I decided to claim autism as my superpower. When you hear the word autism, don't let that hinder you from doing whatever it is that you want to do. That's what Special Olympics tells you. You get involved in sports, but then you take it from the playing field out into real life. Family means to me community, acceptance, love, embracing a person just as they are.

That's what Special Olympics did for me. It's all about family. Subscribe to Agents of Inclusion on the free Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. For the next 12 hours, I will make sure that I answer as many of these questions as possible that did not get asked. Also, we're closing in on another. It would be our spring edition of Ask Amy Anything on our YouTube channel. That will come up sometime before Mother's Day.

I don't know why I'm picking that. I guess because it's about a month away. We'll do it sometime in the next month. Also, some of you are asking about the Chubby Bunny World Championship. Yes, we are doing it again this spring.

I was on vacation. Marash, who has no choice, he has to come back and try to redeem himself from last year's debacle. Marash will be part of it, so we have to coordinate his schedules. Same thing, we believe that Pat, for those of you who listen to Pat, I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me, was that the act from Saturday Night Live?

Anyway, I don't know if it is or not. I could be mixing two acts. So Pat, who is part of multiple different shows, he hosts every now and then, but he is also part of the DA show that follows us here on CBS Sports Radio. He's agreed to be in on it, so it would be Jay, me, I'm not going to emcee this year because that's a distinct disadvantage. Marash and Pat Boyle, and then we are hoping to have Matt the musher rejoin us, because he and Jay were co-champions in 2022. We just haven't gotten it organized yet, but we will. Now that I'm done with vacation, I have no more time off until the third week in June, and so we're straight through now, moving through the NBA and the NHL playoffs, and the NFL Draft that's coming up, which means that we've got time to work it out. So we have not forgotten, we do have the Chubby Bunny World Championship plans in the works.

I can't! What happened to double the game? It's still funny. And then producer Jay, he puts some of the marshmallow in his mouth and projectile moments it across, well it was going to go across the room, but it's backed into the microphone. Shot that thing. You did, you shot put it in. Exit velocity was a challenge you call a stand. The exit velo, except that it hit the microphone and bounced back at you. Almost put my eye out.

It's like when you're on the golf course and you don't see the tree, you're aiming somewhere completely different and the ball smacks into the tree with such incredible force that it bounces right back to you. If you haven't seen it, it's even funnier seeing it actually, you can see producer Jay projectile a marshmallow right into a microphone, but you can also see Sean Marash nearly die. I'm not sure why I'm laughing. No, absolutely not. I'm the judge, but I'm going to give up the MC duties because talking and stuffing marshmallows into your mouth is not a great combination of a winner, and I'm tired of being a loser at Chubby Bunny.

Also for a really quick gag reflex, so I'm not sure I'll ever be the winner, but I need to allow. We might invite Andrew Bogush, the morning anchor on CBS Sports Radio to be our MC. So yeah, we've got all kinds of plans. We just haven't gotten to it yet. But if you missed the most recent version, it's on our YouTube channel.

Thousands of you have watched it. It's hysterical. It's absolutely hysterical. So to whet your appetite, it is coming up this spring along with whatever mischief we can get into.

What happened to double digits? My favorite part is Pete laughing. That's my favorite part.

He loses his mind. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. You can find me on Twitter. Also our Facebook page.

Again, thanks for your questions for Ask Amy. Back in studio for the first time since April 6th, the morning of April 7th. It feels like I wasn't sure my key card was going to work. It feels like it's been a long time. Even as we were prepping for the show last night, we found the breaking news about the Warriors and Draymond Green. And if you missed it, this is the incident that happened in game number one to game number two between the Kings and the Warriors with roughly seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter. Curry has the rebound. Sabah is on the floor and he just got stomped on by Green and a foul was called.

And that may warrant an ejection. There was nothing subtle about that. He went to the floor and Green in the tangle. It appeared to me like he just. I said stomped in the end until I see a replay. I'm going to stick with that for the moment.

But the bonus is still down. My leg got grabbed second time in two nights. Referees just watch it. I got to land my foot somewhere and I'm not the most flexible person, so it's not stretching that far. So you didn't really see where you were stepping. I can only step so far and pulling my leg away.

So it is what it is. The explanation was I stomped too hard. How hard was that impact? Were you surprised that he was on the ground for that long?

No, I was surprised that he stayed on that long. Draymond Green in the wake of his ejection and game number two then going to the Kings who come up with I think it was a 17 to eight run without Dre. The defense is not as good for the Warriors and now they're going to suffer without him in game number three even though it will be on their home court in San Francisco coming up on Thursday Thursday. That's when the Warriors host the Kings, but Green will have a one game suspension and as I told you last night, I have no doubt this is the reason the NBA confirmed it. The suspension was based in part on Green's history of unsportsmanlike acts.

There is a reason why Green, Draymond, was hit harder by the officials. These guys know his rep. His reputation precedes him. His resume is lengthy. He's got a rap sheet. It's a resume.

It's a rap sheet. It's a reputation for Draymond Green and the NBA is not going to let this incident go without making a statement. Without making him an example. He can't walk up to the line and put his toes on the line and get away with what a lot of other players in the NBA can get away with because he's Draymond Green. He's got to stand back from the line farther.

Now I get it. His intensity, his emotion, his fierce approach, the fact that he talks and he gets under his opponent's skin. He's fire. Right? The rest of the Warriors are ice.

Many of them are chill. He's fire. And he's good for the Warriors, both on the court as well as in the locker room. He's their heart and soul. Steve Kerr has said it over and over, which means he's got a responsibility. If the line is right in front of him, he needs to take two giant steps back. And I know that's hard to do when you play with your emotion, your adrenaline running high. That's what makes him good. But the team needs him. And once again, in an NBA playoff series, he will miss a game with a suspension.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. I don't love the way that the penalties were divvied out, divvied up, meted out in game number two. Because Sabonis, Damonta Sabonis clearly grabbed his ankle. What if, and I know we don't deal with what ifs, but hypothetically, a lot of times the punishment that officials hand out is directly connected to or in direct correlation to whether or not the victim or whether or not the guy who gets fouled gets hurt.

How often do we see the penalty is more egregious because a guy gets hurt? What if Draymond Green trips over Sabonis because he can't get his leg free, falls and cracks a knee or hits his head? You can be sure that would have been a more egregious penalty than a technical foul for Sabonis. But Sabonis doesn't have a rep. Draymond does. And so Draymond can't take the same risks. He was getting grabbed.

His feet were getting grabbed. It happened in game one as well, which is what Dray is saying after the fact. But when it comes to the NBA and its disciplinary action, there's no Sabonis in that equation.

There's only Draymond Green and his rap sheet. Now it helps that the Warriors are playing at home. They are a crappy road team. So when Draymond was ejected with seven minutes to go in the game on Monday.

I wouldn't say it was a done deal, but it's a lot harder for them to win without him when they are away from home. At home, they've got the crowd behind them. You would expect that they would have friendly rims. It's a thing.

It really is a thing. And the Warriors are, they're a veteran group. They know their backs are against the wall. They need everything Andrew Wiggins can give them. They need a Jordan Poole performance in which his head is on straight. They need a Gary Porter, Gary Porter, not Gary Porter. A Gary Payton Jr. performance in which he is a defensive stopper.

They need all of that. Plus Stephen Clay. Kevon Looney getting to all the rebounds. It's going to have to be all hands on deck because they're not as good without Draymond.

And he has to live with that. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. In the other Western Conference series, the one that took place on Tuesday night. Man, Russell Westbrook rides again. 42-34 Clippers, 655 to go in the second. Westbrook will walk it from left to right. Guarded by Booker, he crosses over, drives down the left alley, attacks the ramp, floats it in and the foul. Russell Westbrook on a mission in this first half.

He's got a game high 12 and a chance for one more as Aiden's going to be called for the foul. That's Noah Eagle on Clippers Radio. A 13-point lead for the Clippers in the first half and Russell Westbrook was their leading scorer. Yes, Kawhi Leonard ends up as the guy with the most points, 31, but Russ another 28 points in this one. Except without Paul George, there's not as much firepower. And while Russell Westbrook is, he's looking like a guy from say, what was it, four years ago that he won the MVP? Five years ago that he won the MVP?

He's looking like a guy who can beat you a variety of ways. They did not have the defense that they needed, especially in the third quarter. So at end of the first half, the Suns actually go on a run, erase the entire deficit. So they're tied at halftime and then when they get that full head of steam coming out of the halftime locker room, it was no contest because the Clippers defense couldn't keep up with their firepower. In the first game, that high pick going left, back to the right side of the lane, makes that mid-range jump shot.

And you know the crowd like this one. It is over. Suns win. The Suns win. The final score here tonight, the Suns 123 and the LA Clippers 109. Al McCoy on Suns radio as they put together a great third quarter. Devin Booker in large part, the catalyst with 18 points in that quarter alone. It was obviously a point of emphasis for us to have a better start.

But you know, you're still not promised that you're going to make all your shots. So just felt the game out, settled into it, seen what they were doing and just went from there. 59% they shot from the floor, 59% with 30 assists on their 50 made buckets.

And here is the yin and yang of the Phoenix Suns. They rely heavily on seven players, but really four. If you include DeAndre Ayton, along with Chris Paul, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant.

They log heavy minutes. Now, Ayton had foul trouble last night, so he didn't play quite as many minutes. But at some point, if they continue advancing through the playoffs, these minutes can wear them down. Not that the NBA playoffs have many quick turnarounds, but they're older guys in many. Well, in the case of CP3 and Kevin Durant, they're older guys with a lot of mileage on them.

And so against better teams that are deeper, who can run fresher defensive legs out there, it could be much more of a challenge. But for now, Monty Williams has KD, Devin Booker and CP3 to run the show. Just having the balance of him and Kevin being able to get to their spots with a live ball helps. But I thought Chris did a really good job of just putting the ball in book's hands and saying, you go. And Chris was on the second side.

So, you know, book scores in a number of ways. And when he's going like that, I think the team feeds off of his his high level play, if you will. Thirty eight points for Booker, along with nine assists. And yeah, it was pretty easy. In fact, it was too easy for the Suns offensively in that second half.

And that's what Tyloo notes is that they just had too much firepower. So how do you how do you keep your own momentum and keep the Suns at bay, especially when it's a game that you have a double figure lead? Well, I think you just got to continue to keep mixing coverages up, you know, not let them get comfortable. And, you know, in the first half, I thought we did a good job with our bigs being up. And then Aiden, you know, he kind of got going.

He made like four or five of them. And then, you know, we backed up, then Booker and KD and CP3 got going. So just mixing up our coverages, try to keep them all balanced. I thought our zone was was pretty good for us at times.

But just, you know, just got to keep trying to keep them all balanced as best as possible. We know it's going to be a tough series and, you know, they came back and took care of business tonight. But I thought we gave ourself a chance. We came out with the right mindset throughout the game. We made a lot of tough jumpers, shot the ball really well from the field. So with all that, we still get ourself a chance to win.

They did, and they did split. So that's a big deal as well. That's some good series brewing in the NBA and in the NHL. Did you know the Seattle Kraken won their first ever playoff game as a franchise, taking out the defending champions last night in a 3-1 win. So that becomes the answer to a trivia question. Other history, Clayton Kershaw winning his 200th career game, all of them with the Dodgers.

He is a throwback to be sure, and it was vintage Kershaw last night. Lots going on in sports, but straight ahead, we're excited. Ross Tucker will join us here on the show. Former NFL offensive lineman now has the Ross Tucker Podcast. He's all over doing analysis in places like the Eagles Radio Network as well as CBS Sports and Westwood One.

So he's up early. We're excited to connect with Ross Tucker next here. After Hours with Amy Lawrence, CBS Sports Radio. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. It's been a while for our next guest who typically joins us in this final hour of the show because he is an early riser.

I do not understand that. I'd rather be up all night than wake up at this hour. But I am glad that he does. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Former offensive lineman Ross Tucker, who is the host of the Ross Tucker Football Podcast and has also heard on Westwood One, CBS Sports, Eagles Radio. We're glad to have him with us. Ross, how are you, my friend? It's been a while. I am doing awesome, Amy.

Yes, it's been way too long. Thank you so much for having me. Of course. Now, I do think that my producer reached out to you when you were on vacation. I don't know if you want people to know where you were vacationing, but I'll tell you my vacation recently if you tell me yours. Okay. All right.

Go ahead. Where were you? It was spring break with my daughters and we ended up going to the Bahamas and it was fantastic. It was, you know, they're 9 and 11 now and kind of right in the middle of softball season. But that's okay.

I'm the coach, so I didn't schedule any practices. Nice. Okay, so see, I thought something different because I could have swore my producer said you were skiing in Montana. Oh, you know what?

We kind of did half and half. Now you got me. Now you're putting me. I forgot I told him that. Yes.

We had a, it's a long story, but we split the spring break between the Bahamas and Montana. Don't ask. Okay.

All right. Well, that's impressive because I was impressed because Montana, I've never been there. It's on my bucket list and I would love to see the snow there. It is incredible. Absolutely incredible. And honestly, Amy, I can just tell you as a former player, it's the only thing I can like still do.

Really? You know, I kind of thought I would end up like being able to play basketball, but you have a back surgery for the bills and I tore my right MCL twice. I haven't been able to play basketball once since I stopped playing football. And then even like golf because of the back surgery aggravates my back. But for some reason I can ski. So I love skiing. I'm a big skier.

It's like my one post NFL career activity I can still really do. Can you hike? Yeah, I can hike. I like to walk. I mean, we don't go on that many hikes because I don't think the rest of my family does.

You know, it's so funny you say that. Growing up, Amy, my dad would always be like, Ross, want to go for a walk? And I'd always be like, no, like to a walk where? Where are we going to walk? What do you mean go for a walk?

I never understood. And guess what, Amy? Now I'm the one asking my wife and girls if they'll go for a walk with me.

And thankfully they say yes a lot. Oh, that's good. That's very sweet. Actually, it was the same for me when I was a kid and my parents would say, let's go on a ride. I was like, a ride where? Where are we going? Oh, we're just going to go on a ride. No, I hated that kind of thing.

Absolutely not. But the reason I ask about hiking is because my calves still hurt from hiking the Grand Canyon last Friday. And so it was a bucket list item. I just want to share. I want you to be impressed.

Four and a half miles down, 4,400 feet down, four and a half miles and 4,400 feet back up. And it was incredible. And yes, I'm still sore. So I can feel your pain, man. I feel it. Oh, I can totally, totally see that.

Yeah, I would love to do that. But yeah, you're using muscles over and over again that you probably don't use that much. You're going up and down hill like that for sure. Yeah, it was taxing, but it was awesome. All right. Vacation talk out of the way.

I'm glad you had a good spring. The Ross Tucker Football Podcast doesn't take the off season off. So what is the hot topic on the podcast these days, Ross? You know, I think it's been this week, it's been the quarterback contracts. You know, with Jalen Hurts getting that huge deal, it's created a lot of conversation around Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert.

And there's so many different layers to it, right? There's Jalen Hurts getting that money. Is he worth that money? Is he, you know, he really had one amazing year. But, you know, we've seen guys have one amazing year before and then regress and and not be able to sustain that level of performance.

I think some people believe that. I know the Eagles obviously believe that that's just the start for him. And then you get into how similar the contract is to what Lamar Jackson turned out in Baltimore. And so you have that whole conversation.

And I was actually, you know, down in D.C. yesterday watching my my niece's senior game. And I was talking with somebody and all they wanted to talk about was the Odell Beckham Jr. contract. And I said, well, it doesn't happen very often in the NFL, but basically he got probably twice as much as he was going to because Lamar Jackson really wanted him. And the Ravens are kind of doing everything they can to try to get Lamar Jackson to play for them this year.

So I would say still, I mean, obviously the draft is a week away, but I think the quarterback conversation, quarterback contract, especially as it relates to Lamar Jackson, is still front and center. If you're Lamar, do you tow the line? Do you hold the line or do you maybe back off it a little bit because you want to play in twenty three?

Well, I absolutely play in twenty three. I mean, first of all, if I was Lamar, I would have taken the five year 250 million dollar contract with 200 million essentially in implicit guarantees. Yeah.

A year ago. Right. So Lamar and I are not on the same page as to what we would do. But now if I'm Lamar, I absolutely play this year.

I don't see what purpose it serves to not play this year. His options are to take the best big long term contract you can get. I think there's been some three year fully guaranteed contracts that have been put out there that he could strongly consider that I think is a good option as well. Or he could also just negotiate a better one year deal than the thirty two million the Ravens are offering.

And I think they'd be open to that as well. So there's really three different doors for him. The thing I haven't understood. I know what's going on here, right? He sold the Deshaun Watson contract. He thinks he's done more on the field and hasn't done the stuff off the field. And I don't blame him.

He's right. But. Just because the Browns gave out that contract doesn't mean any other team is.

And at this point, it doesn't appear as if any other team is going to. And he's very concerned about getting the last two years guaranteed. Right. But what I think is strange about that is twofold.

Number one. What's the worst thing that can happen if the last two years aren't guaranteed that after three years they cut you? Well, then you're just a free agent. That's what he has anyway.

Yes. That's what he wants anyway. And here's the other thing I understand.

OK. He wants the security of the last two years being guaranteed. Well, in exchange for that, he's given up the security the last two years. You know what I mean? Like he's played without the security of big guarantees, long term, you know, big money the last two years in order to get it that, you know, five years from now.

I don't understand that logic. Ross Tucker is a former offensive lineman. You can hear him now as an analyst on Westwood One and CBS Sports and and Eagles Radio. And he's got the Ross Tucker football podcast that goes year round.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence, CBS Sports Radio. It is certainly a fascinating question. And maybe there aren't as many options now. So that's part of the deal. Just out of curiosity, when you think about the the number that would be most important to you.

Right. So some players are more about highest average annual value. Some are more about the guaranteed money. He didn't get the most guaranteed money ever, meaning Jalen Hurts, but he does end up as slightly higher paid per season.

Which one equates to respect the most in your mind? I think it's the guaranteed number. Yeah, I mean, I think these guys look at the NBA players, the baseball players, the hockey guys, and I think they just want the guaranteed number.

And it's interesting, Amy, because. If I was still playing as a German offensive lineman that played for five teams over seven years, that would be the number that I cared about the most, too, because I got cut four times. So like how much is guaranteed? However, if I was a star quarterback. Who had done what Lamar's done so far, I would care most.

I mean, there'd be a blend between the average average annual value and the guarantees, but a heavy emphasis on the average annual value, like how much am I getting each year? Because I really wouldn't be that worried about getting cut. I mean, you know, think about the guys like Carson Wentz. I mean, think about the guys who have gotten second and third chances.

Right. Still getting paid a lot of money is starting quarterback. So, OK, you play for the Ravens. Let's say after two or three years, they sour on you.

Some other team at that point is going to really need a starting quarterback and they're going to continue to pay Lamar Jackson. I like that. I mean, I would just take the money that that I know is in my pocket. And I don't really care about the respect factor, though, but I'm not a guy.

I understand that men, especially pro athletes, seem to care more about money as an indicator of of their respect and what the franchise values them. I have to I'm going to totally pivot on you. What's your reaction to Jamar Hamlin being cleared to play football again, Ross?

Wow. Well, initial reaction is obviously it's wonderful news and I'm thrilled for him. But my immediate second reaction was, Amy, I started to think to myself, would I do it? Would I play again? And I think what happened to him is so unique and so random.

And he's met with so many specialists and so many doctors that I think I would because they've all said, listen, this is like getting struck by lightning, like it's not going to happen twice. The emotional cordness, you got hit in the wrong spot at the wrong time, et cetera, et cetera. But then I think about like telling my mom and dad I'm going to play again. You know what I mean? Like after what they went through, after what they watched. You know, you got to remember, I think sometimes we lose sight of this, like I know you know this, Amy. But these are these are real people. You know, these are real guys and real lives. And they all know what happened to him. And I think that'd be a difficult conversation. You know, I was surprised.

Very different story. But I was surprised Alex Smith came back and tried to play football again. You know, there's certain there's certain injuries where you get so close.

It's something so bad that I'm always amazed and impressed when guys decide to actually go out there and play again. I love that he wants to inspire other people. I'm so amazed by his wisdom and his perspective and his thoughtfulness as a 24 year old who's been through this, but clearly doesn't want this to be just about him. He wants to impact the world around him. And for that reason, I'm so glad he's decided to keep playing. You know what? I think that's very well said. And I do think he knows now that he has an opportunity to spread awareness about, you know, the unique circumstance around what happened to him because it is unique in me, but it happens and it happens like with Little League baseball and softball.

You know, I told you I'm a softball coach and we just went over what to do in that situation, because if a kid gets hit in the chest with the ball at the wrong time, it actually happens more in those sports than it does in football. Interesting. Ross Tucker Football Podcast and then on Twitter at Ross Tucker NFL. Before I let you go, if you are the Panthers, which direction are you going at the top of the draft? Yeah, I'm going with Bryce Young.

Yeah, and I think that's what they're going to do. And that is what I would do, because I mean, Alabama plays on national TV seemingly every week. I still don't remember the guy having a bad game. I mean, even the two games they lost this year, I thought they put up like 40 some points. He just had to me that incredible knack of making the right play at the right time over and over and over again. There's a reason why he was so highly touted in high school.

There's a reason why, I mean, if Alabama offers you a scholarship at five ten and a quarter, 170 pounds or whatever he was, he's not even that bad. You know how good you have to be? I mean, he just he just finds a way to find a way, if that makes sense. It does. It absolutely does. And that's part of the pedigree there of Alabama.

Right. Ross, Mother's Day is coming up. What can you offer people who are looking for a great gift from mom with your awesome My Front Page story?

Amy, perfect timing. Mother's Day will be here. Guys, I'm telling you, it's by far the best Mother's Day gift I've ever heard of. You talk to a writer for 10 minutes or you just fill out a quick email while you're driving to work or whatever.

Tell them how great your mom is or if you're getting it for your wife, how great she is. They write an incredible story with pictures. It looks like it's on the cover of the newspaper. It's framed. It's beautiful. And being able to give it to her and tell her you had a story written about her, she'll be blown away. Won't even realize that's a thing. And then when she reads the quotes like, I never thank her enough for all little things.

I'm just telling you, Amy, they cry every time. Cheers and joy. And then it's hanging up in the house forever. It's the gift that keeps on giving my front page story dot com. Trust me, dudes, my front page story dot com.

Best gift ever. And if you need to find Ross on Twitter again at Ross Tucker NFL, Ross Tucker Football Podcast, because the NFL never goes away. Not that we want you to go away.

Don't twist that. Former NFL offensive lineman. You can hear him on Eagles radio.

Westwood won CBS Sports. Ross, good to catch up with you. Thank you so much for a few minutes.

Yeah, don't be a stranger, Amy. Anytime. I love coming on with you. Thank you. All right.

We'll take you up on that. Producer J right now. Speed dial with Ross Tucker.

I can see it. Good to talk to Ross. And the fact that he always comes up with a different perspective that I've never heard before is my favorite thing about him. That and his humor. If you listen to him on any of the games in which he's an analyst, he's a goofball, which is cool. I speak goofball.

You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. Garlin into the lane. Garlin up with the left hand.

Good as he spun it home. How about DG with 26 in the first half. Donovan Mitchell around an Allen screen. Donovan, three ball, too strong. Mitchell got his own miss. Chumps it to Mobley. Pow with two hands. Donovan Mitchell with another assist.

101-76, Cavs by 25. This is what we talked about pregame. We asked how our guys would respond to a little bit of adversity. We talked about what they've done all year long. All year long is they've learned lessons the hard way sometimes.

But the next time they stepped on the floor, they figured it out. And again, it's a credit to them. What they did defensively tonight was phenomenal. The way they competed on that end of the floor. The way they scrapped every possession. That's a phenomenal effort by our group.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. JB Bickerstaff happy with the way the Cavs rebounded in Game 2 against the New York Knicks. In fact, forcing nine Knicks turnovers in the first half alone.

And Darius Garlin, he was the catalyst. He took the exhortation, the encouragement of his teammates to heart. They said to him, be more aggressive. Go out there and shoot the ball more. And he said he beat himself up over the fourth quarter of the opener in this series because they didn't even take a shot in the fourth quarter against the Knicks.

Going back to the weekend. So he finishes with 32. And I think it's significant that he had 26 points in the first half because he came out firing. Yeah, that was something for me.

I wasn't expecting it for myself. But I don't know the playoffs do something to me, I guess. I mean, everybody in the building told me to go be aggressive, go shoot the ball. So, I mean, I watched the field from the first game and seeing some opportunities where I can go get mine and go be aggressive.

And that's what I just tried to do today. That's the all star we all know. And it was it was great to see. And I told him at the end of the day, like that's what we're going to need to continue to be aggressive. I think it showed a level of maturity. You know, I think in a lot of different ways to come out and do it the way he did it. You know, obviously he can score in bunches, but, you know, it was really within the flow of the game that there was forced different things.

But, you know, he came out with a purpose, you know, and I think that's that's something that, you know, I said a lot about him. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Elsewhere in the east, the Celtics are able to stay out in front of the Hawks courtesy of one Derek White.

How about this? Derek White has 50 points in the first two games as the Celtics lead the Hawks to zip. He's averaging 25 points per game.

So that's kind of cool at 26 last night, 24 in the opener. Yes, the series is far from over, but he was actually the one hearing the MVP chants instead of Jason Tatum. Just so much more of a dynamic team when D. White is asserting himself and being aggressive and not being passive. Right. Sometime we've talked about it being too passive and looking for looking for guys too much. He's like too good of a guy. But, you know, these last few games, you know, being aggressive, making the right play, attacking the rim. Right.

Not necessarily waiting. Just makes us that much better of a team. I like it.

I like the way these theories are going. And tonight we've got the question marks about both Ja Morant as well as about Giannis Antennakounmpo. Now, he's listed as doubtful for game number two. But of course, the Bucks desperately need him because they're already trailing against the Miami Heat one game to none. So that's in Milwaukee tonight.

And earlier, it's the Lakers in Memphis. And so you've got the Ja Morant question whether or not he'll be able to go. Taylor Jenkins actually indicates that it's not about doing further damage.

It may just be about whether or not Jock and Barrett. He's progressing to dribbling and shooting as much as he can. You know, as I say, he's got some pain. He's dealing with it.

So it's kind of a tolerance thing. But, you know, he's got some stiffness in his hand that he's kind of slowly getting through. But we'll see how he wakes up tomorrow. So he's got an aggravated soft tissue injury in his hand from where he decided to charge into Anthony Davis.

Because that seems like a good idea. And then he falls hard and he lands on that wrist and kind of aggravates the soft tissue. So those are some of your NBA storylines. Again, Draymond Green late last night suspended one game. Will not be part of the Warriors-Kings series in game number three. Instead, we'll have to watch from elsewhere in the bowels of the Chase Center. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. As I talked about with Ross Tucker just a couple minutes ago, Damar Hamlin has indicated he will in fact play football again.

And hearing him speak on Tuesday, once again, I'm blown away by his poise, by his calm, by his wisdom, by his maturity, and certainly by his perspective now at 24 years old. My heart is still in it. My heart is still in the game.

I love the game. It's something I want to prove to myself, not nobody else. It's just I just want to show people that fear is a choice. That you can keep going in something without having the answers and without knowing what's at the end of the tunnel. Or you might feel anxious. You might feel any type of way.

But you just keep putting that right foot in front of the left one. I was saying this earlier on the show, but it dawns on me, this contrast that Damar talks about his heart as the figurative heart that contains our joy, our peace, our excitement, our anticipation, our passion. But it also contains the disappointment, the grief, the pain that comes with some of the more traumatic life events. And he's mentioned how he's lost people in his life and he's so glad that his people don't have to miss him. So he's talking about his figurative heart. But it's his actual physical heart muscle that was the one that caused the cardiac arrest based on this very rare condition where he just got hit at the right time in the heartbeat or the wrong time in the heartbeat cycle. And because of that, he suffers this collapse on the field. And so this kind of dichotomy or, if you will, the two sides of Damar Hamlin's heart, the physical side that got damaged, but the figurative emotional side, the heart that sometimes we say our heart hurts us right now, his actual heart hurt him, but his figurative heart, his emotional heart, that's the one that still beats for football. And I just love how he wants to inspire. He wants to use everything in his life moving forward as a reason to extend hope and to inspire others.

And at 24 years old, you don't find a lot of those kind of people. So I'm thrilled to know that he'll be playing football again and I will be rooting for him unabashedly. All right, it's our hump show. We put it in the books. I'm going grocery shopping because I have no food after vacation. You survive your hump day. We're back tonight right here. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Boom!